Vehicle parking apparatus



March 24, 1959 Filed April 16, 1956 Fig].

D. H. CLARK 2,878,921

VEHICLE PARKING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Do/vA 1.0 H. CLA RK ATTORNEYS.

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BQO/VALD H CLARK A TTORNE VS.

Maich 24, 1959 Filed April 16, 1956 D. H. CLARK VEHICLE PARKING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 59AM) H. CLARK @W, M,Mr@eaa ATTORNEYS.

March 24, 1959 D. H. CLARK 2,878,921

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' tend for a considerable longitudinal forms are adapted to rest in rows along the two super- 'the particular form of United States Patent VEHICLE PARKING APPARATUS Donald H. Clark, Springville, N.Y., assignor of one-half to C. Stuart Fielding, Eggertsville, N .Y.

Application April 16, 1956, Serial No. 578,213 2 Claims. (Cl. 198-137) This invention relates to storage means for vehicles and particularly to a form of vehicle storage apparatus wherein vehicles are loaded at a given point for subsequent movement by and with the apparatus to various storage points therein.

The apparatus of the present invention provides storage means including an endless series of vehicle receiving platforms. Speaking generally, the device provides two horizontal superposed tracks or supports which exdistance. The platposed platforms and means are provided whereby the platforms at one end of the upper series will move downwardly into the lower series While the platforms at the other end move from the lower support upwardly to the upper support.

The receiving platforms thus move in a continuous series in the form of a relatively flat horizontal elongated loop. By reason of this general arrangement the major portion of the series of stored vehicles is directly supported by the upper and lower rigid longitudinally extending rigid trackways along which the platforms roll. In the invention illustrated herein by' way of example only one car platform moves downwardly at one end of the elongated loop at one time while only one car moves upwardly at the other end of the loop at that time. Accordingly, the maximum unbalance that can exist in the system is equal to the weight of one vehicle as when a loaded platform is being moved up or down at one end while an empty platform is being lowered or raised at the other end.

In certain prior 'art Ferris wheel or vertical loop types of arrrangements a prime disadvantage, although by no means the only disadvantage, has been the substantial lack of balance that might exist when a number of cars are loaded at one side of the apparatus while a number of empty cells or carriers are at the other side.

Furthermore, in the present arrangement all of the car platforms, excepting the two which occupy end posi tions at any given time, are securely supported at four points spaced about the margins of each platform, as will appear more clearly later herein. Accordingly, the several vehicles are securely supported against swinging or tipping or any other undesirable or dangerous movements.

As to the two end platforms at any given time, the platforms thereof are supported by trunnions at opposite ends of each platform and by parallelogram linkage which retains these platforms in horizontal position by acting between such platforms and the other platforms of the series which are then resting securely on the stationary, rigid, longitudinal trackways.

The aforesaid trunnions bear on an axis extending substantially through the center of the platform so that the vehicle is more or less balanced across such axis and substantially no tipping or swinging torque is produced when a loaded platform is temporarily unsupported by a longi- Patented Mar. 24, 1 959 tudinal trackway in movement thereof from one trackway to the other.

The means for loading cars on the platforms and removing them therefrom do not form a direct part of the present invention. The cars are preferably placed upon platforms and removed therefrom when such platforms are in an end position, that is, when they are about midway in their movements from one trackway to the other at one end of the apparatus.

A single specific embodiment of the principles of the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in detail in the following specification. Such embodiment is set forth by way of example and it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited thereto and that various mechanical modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, such scope being limited only as defined in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a general top plan view of one form of the apparatus of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view, on a larger scale, showing the portion of the apparatus appearing at the upper right hand portion of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of the right hand portion of the apparatus of Figs. 1 and 2, partly in cross section as indicated by the line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cross sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross sectional view on the line 55 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary cross sectional view on the line 66 of Fig. 5.

Like characters of reference denote like parts throughout the several figures of the drawings and reference will first be had to the rigid framing and supporting structure of the form of vehicle storage apparatus disclosed herein by way of example. This rigid framing and supporting structure comprises essentially a pair of laterally spaced longitudinally extending upright frame members designated generally by the numerals 10 and 11.

In the illustrated instance the frame member 10 is at one side of the apparatus and is disposed adjacent to the fronts of the vehicles stored in the apparatus and the numeral 11 designates the frame at the other side of the apparatus which is adjacent to the rear of these vehicles. The frames 10 and 11 are identical and frame 10 will be described in detail by way of example, which descrip tion will sufiice for both of the frames 10 and 11.

Frame 10 comprises upper and lower inwardly facing channel members 12 and 13 and semicircular end channels 14 and 15 connect the adjacent ends of the upper and paratus generally. Frame structure 10 includes a plurality of rigid vertical brace members 16 which in the present instance are further rigidified by diagonal brace members 17.

The upper channels 12 of frame members 10 and 11 are held in rigid spaced relation by means of a plurality of transverse beam members 18 which are fixed at their ends to the nndersides of the opposed upper channels 12. The lower channels 13 of the frame members 10 and 11 are likewise held in fixed spaced relation by cross beam members 19 whereby the facing oblong endless track formations of the front and rear frame members 10 and 11 are presented and held in fixed alinement.

Longitudinal more or less central rigid track means are provided at the upper and lower portions of the frame structure generally for guiding and supporting the vehicle receiving devices in their longitudinal movements along the storage apparatus. At the upper portion of the apparatus a series of beam members 20 extend one between each of the lateral beam members 18 to form a continuous track extending longitudinally of the apparatus from one end beam member 18 to the other end beam member.

At the lower portion of the apparatus longitudinal track beam members 21 likewise extend between the several lower cross beam members 19 to form a similar continuous longitudinal trackway. Suitable horizontally extending diagonal bracing may be provided between the various beam members 18 through 21 as required.

Each vehicle receiving and supporting device comprises a rigid platform structure 22 which includes at its lower side a pair of rollers 27 adapted to roll along the upper and lower trackways formed by the beam members 21 and 20. The rollers 27 are thus alined longitudinally of the apparatus or transversely with respect to the individual platforms 22.

In the present instance each platform 22 is fixed to the top of a beam member 24 which extends transversely of the apparatus and has fixed therein at its opposite ends a pair of end crank members 25. The end crank members 25 include crank formations 26, all of which are fixed relative to the several platforms 22 and extend permanently in the same direction, in the present instance, directly upwardly. The end crank members 25 are further provided at their outer ends with rollers 23 which engage in the facing endless trackways formed by the channel members 12 through 15.

The end portions of the crank members 25 which carry the rollers 23 are concentric with respect to the platform beam members 24 and serve as pivotal connections for an endless series of rack members 28. A rack member 28 extends between each adjacent pair of crank members 25 and the individual rack members are provided with half-lap notches at their ends as shown in Figs. 2 and 6 whereby the racks overlap and present a continuous series of rack teeth, particularly when the rack members extend in horizontal alinement as along the upper and lower channels 12 and 13.

A link 29 extends between each pair of upwardly extending crank formations 26, being connected therewith for free pivotal movements. It will be seen from the foregoing that each rack member 28 and its two associated crank formations 26, together with the associated link 29, forms a parallelogram linkage which maintains the several crank formations in a permanently upright position despite the movement of this linkage about the semicircular end channels.

Throughout the major portion of the travel of each platform 22 it is firmly supported on the longitudinal tracks formed by the beam members 20 and 21, through the medium of rollers 27, so that the parallelogram linkages perform their chief function as the individual platforms move about the semicircular end portions of the apparatus when they are not supported and held in a horizontal position by the rollers 27. it will be noted that the support given by the rollers 23 is directly in line with the platform beam member 24 which in turn directly underlies platform 22.

Thus the vehicle on a given platform is more or less balanced over the axis of the rollers 23 and beam member 24 and the mass of the vehicle in stopping or starting the operation of the apparatus has substantially no torque arm tending to rotate the associated beam member 24. Thus the arrangement shown and described results in a minimum tendency of the platforms to move from a horizontal position about the aforesaid axis even when unsupported on the trackways 20 and 21, and accordingly the alining function of the links 29 and the crank formations 26 imposes no substantial loads on that portion of the mechanism.

This is of great practical importance since the cumulative effects of such loads would otherwise render the present general arrangement impractical. For instance, certain prior art vehicle storage apparatuses contemplate suspended cars or platforms more or less in the form of the familiar ferris wheel, and the swinging tendencies of such platforms, with the several ton weight of each car on each platform renders those structures impractical and unworkable. Furthermore, in such prior art devices all of the cells or carriers are subject to such swinging at all times, whereas in the present apparatus all but two of the platforoms rest securely on a four point rigid support at all times.

Reversible drive means are provided for moving the several vehicle platforms 22 jointly and synchronously about the horizontally oblong path or orbit defined by the movements of the rollers 23 in the channels 12 through 15, and such drive means will now be described. Duplicate drive means powered by individual synchronous electric motors are provided at each end of each of the frame members It) and 11, thus providing four complete drive units, and each drive unit applies driving force to the assembled rack members 23 at both the upper and lower channels 12 and 13. Therefore the driving force is applied to the rack members at eight separate points.

The drive arrangement of the right-hand end of rear frame member 11 is shown in Figs. 5 and 6 and comprises a reversible electric driving motor 33 carried by an end beam member 18 which likewise supports a speed reducing gear mechanism 34 to which motor 33 is connected in the usual manner. The output shaft of the speed reducing gear mechanism 34 carries a driving sprocket 35. v

A stationary shaft 37 is carried in a bearing 38 which is fixed to upper channel 12 and a pinion 39 rotatable on shaft 37 meshes with the several rack members 28 adjacent to rear frame member 11. A sprocket 40 is fixed to pinion 39 and a driving chain 41 connects sprocket 40 with drive sprocket 35.

A similar shaft 43 is mounted in a bearing 44 fixed to lower channel 13 and a pinion 45 fixed to shaft 43 meshes with the rack members 28 as they pass along the lower extent of frame member 10. A sprocket 40 is likewise fixed to shaft 37 and a driving chain 41 connects to sprocket 40 with drive sprocket 35.

A similar stationary shaft 43 is mounted in a bearing 44 fixed to lower channel 13 and a pinion 45 rotatable on shaft 43 meshes with the rack members 28 as they pass along the lower extent of frame member 11. A sprocket 46 fixed to pinion 45 is connected to a sprocket 36 by a driving chain 48, sprocket 36 being fixed to pinion 39 and sprocket 46). It will thus be seen that operation of electric motor 33 applies driving force to the rack members 28 passing both above and below the driving motor 33 at the rear right-hand portion of the apparatus as viewed in the drawings and duplicate driving mechanisms are provided at the other three corners thereof.

I claim:

1. in a vehicle storage apparatus, laterally spaced rigid upright frame members having facing aligned track formations, said track formations having upper and lower horizontal straight line portions and curved connecting end portions forming a longitudinally extending oblong closed figure, a series of vehicle receiving platforms each extending transversely between said frame members and having trunnion means at its opposite ends to be engaged and guided by said track portions, said trunnion means including arm members, each of said arm members ex tending outwardly from an axis through said trunnion members, link means connected pivotally at their oppo site ends to said trunnion means in alignment with the track engaging portions of said trunnion means to maintain the platforms in uniformly spaced relations, and other link members pivotally connected at their opposite ends to the outer ends of each of said arm members to form parallelogram linkages for retaining each of said platforms horizontal as the same passes about the curved end portions of said track formations and rigid longitudinally extending support means engaging said platforms in their movement along the straight line portions of said track formations for maintaining the same in horizontal positions and supporting the same independently of said trunnion means and said link members.

2. In a vehicle storage apparatus, laterally spaced rigid upright frame members having facing aligned track formations, said track formations having upper and lower horizontal straight line portions and curved connecting end portions forming a longitudinally extending oblong closed figure, a series of vehicle receiving platforms each extending transversely between said frame members and having trunnion means at its opposite ends to be engaged and guided by said track portions, said trunnion means including arm members, each of said arm members extending outwardly from an axis through said trunnion means, rack members connected pivotally at their opposite ends to said trunnion means in alignment with the track engaging portions of said trunnion means to maintain the platforms in uniformly spaced relations, and link members pivotally connected at their opposite ends to the outer ends of each of said arm members to form with said rack members parallelogram linkages for retaining each of said platforms horizontal as the same passes about the curved end portions of said track formations, rigid longitudinally extending support means engaging said platforms in their movement along the straight line portions of said track formations for maintaining the same in horizontal positions and supporting the same independently of said trunnion means and said link members,v and drive pinions adapted to engage said rack members along said straight line track portions to move the platforms about said track formations.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,488,251 House Mar. 25, 1924 1,771,022 Wachs et al. July 22, 1930 2,731,160 Maier Jan. 17, 1956 2,738,885 Demaline Mar. 20, 1956 2,794,559 Rowe June 4, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 490,966 Italy Feb. 22, 1954 961,423 France Nov. 21, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,878,921 March 24, 1959 Donald H. Clark It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 4, line '71, for "members" read means same line, for means" read members Signed and sealed this 14th day of July 1959.

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL H, AXLINE ROBERT C. WATSON Attesting Oflicer Commissioner of Patents 

